Jim Fitzpatrick

The city of Costa Mesa is seeking applicants for the Planning Commission. The five-member commission is hoping to fill the spot left vacant when Jim Fitzpatrick resigned from his seat last month so that he could continue to serve on the Costa Mesa Sanitary District's board. Fitzpatrick's peers at the Sanitary District felt his service to the Planning Commission was a conflict - a concern Fitzpatrick denied but to which he acquiesced by leaving the commission. The board's directors, however, are still seeking his removal.

The Costa Mesa Sanitary District is seeking applications to fill a vacancy on its board of directors. The seat vacated by former Director Jim Fitzpatrick lasts until December 2014. Fitzpatrick resigned the seat in January, saying at the time that he no longer wanted to defend himself from the Sanitary District's lawsuit that alleged his prior concurrent service on the district and the Costa Mesa Planning Commission were incompatible. Fitzpatrick has since been appointed to the Planning Commission.

At its meeting Tuesday, the Costa Mesa City Council is expected to appoint Parks and Recreation Commissioner Jeff Mathews to the Planning Commission. Mathews, a Costa Mesa resident since 1985, was also the head of the Costa Mesa Homeless Task Force. The Planning Commission chose Mathews as its suggested pick to the council in July to fill in for Jim Fitzpatrick, who stepped down earlier this year. Fitzpatrick resigned to keep his seat on the Costa Mesa Sanitary District.

A divided Costa Mesa City Council on Tuesday made three appointments to the Planning Commission during a meeting that echoed the sharp political differences seen in the November election. The council voted 5 to 0 to reappoint Planning Commissioner Colin McCarthy, but split 3-2 on returning former Planning Commissioner Jim Fitzpatrick and appointing newcomer Timothy Sesler. Mayor Jim Righeimer, Mayor Pro Tem Steve Mensinger and Councilman Gary Monahan voted in favor of the appointments; Councilwomen Wendy Leece and Sandra Genis dissented.

The state attorney general has ruled that the Costa Mesa Sanitary District may sue to remove one of its directors because of a potential incompatibility in his prior service to both the district and the city's Planning Commission. Kamala D. Harris and Deputy Attorney General Daniel G. Stone wrote in their public opinion Tuesday that Jim Fitzpatrick, in accepting a four-year reappointment seat to the Planning Commission in January 2011, may have forfeited his concurrent seat on the district's board of directors.

The Costa Mesa Sanitary District has spent more than $25,000 this year trying to oust board member Jim Fitzpatrick, according to the agency's estimates. About $18,667 has gone to the Los Angeles-based Meyers Nave law firm, which earlier this year offered its opinion that it was likely a conflict of interest for Fitzpatrick to serve on both the sanitary district's board and the Costa Mesa Planning Commission. Nearly $7,000 has gone to the district's contracted in-house counsel, Harper & Burns of Orange.

The Costa Mesa Planning Commission voted this week to appoint a Parks and Recreation commissioner to its vacant seat. Jeff Mathews was recommended with a 3-1 vote Monday, with Commissioner Edward Salcedo dissenting on grounds that he wanted the commission to provide a list of three top candidates. Mathews would replace Jim Fitzpatrick, who resigned in the spring. The City Council will decide whether to approve the Planning Commission's recommendation Aug. 7, City Clerk Brenda Green said.

The Costa Mesa Planning Commission will have to wait until next month to find out who will replace a commissioner who suddenly resigned earlier this week. Filling former Commissioner Edward Salcedo's seat, which he resigned Monday, should have required a 10-day notice before the City Council could appoint another person, city officials said Friday afternoon. The directive came from the city clerk's office after Tuesday's council meeting, during which Commissioner Colin McCarthy was unanimously reappointed to the position to serve the remainder of Salcedo's term.

Things are about to get a little hairier in Costa Mesa. Members of Costa Mesa's Team Nuclear are again letting their facial hair grow in support of Movember, a national campaign that encourages men to grow their own "mo" or mustache, in November, to educate people about prostate cancer and other male health issues. "Men have a history of not having conversations about their health," said Jim Fitzpatrick, a member of the charity group and Costa Mesa planning commission chairman.

Costa Mesa city officials issued more than $40,000 in fines earlier this month to a Harbor Boulevard motel known for its frequent police presence and allegedly unsanitary living conditions. Code enforcement and police personnel visited the Costa Mesa Motor Inn on Aug. 15. The 236-room property, at 2277 Harbor Blvd., received about $19,000 in direct fines and $23,000 worth of fix-it tickets, which the owner has 30 days to rectify, according to city officials. "It's just a holistic approach to everything in the city," said Mayor Jim Righeimer, who saw some of the alleged violations firsthand while accompanying code enforcement during the inspection.

Things are about to get a little hairier in Costa Mesa. Members of Costa Mesa's Team Nuclear are again letting their facial hair grow in support of Movember, a national campaign that encourages men to grow their own "mo" or mustache, in November, to educate people about prostate cancer and other male health issues. "Men have a history of not having conversations about their health," said Jim Fitzpatrick, a member of the charity group and Costa Mesa planning commission chairman.

First story in an occasional series about Costa Mesa's troubled motels. The letter was a desperate plea to the police chief. The owner of a Harbor Boulevard motel admitted his business attracted less-than-reputable guests. "Under such difficult circumstances, we have no other choice but to rent to second-rate customers," he wrote. Though a missive like that could have easily been written yesterday, it was penned more than two decades ago by Ming Cheng Chen, owner of the Kon Tiki Motel.

Costa Mesa city officials issued more than $40,000 in fines earlier this month to a Harbor Boulevard motel known for its frequent police presence and allegedly unsanitary living conditions. Code enforcement and police personnel visited the Costa Mesa Motor Inn on Aug. 15. The 236-room property, at 2277 Harbor Blvd., received about $19,000 in direct fines and $23,000 worth of fix-it tickets, which the owner has 30 days to rectify, according to city officials. "It's just a holistic approach to everything in the city," said Mayor Jim Righeimer, who saw some of the alleged violations firsthand while accompanying code enforcement during the inspection.

The Costa Mesa Sanitary District board of directors appointed Arlene Schafer on Friday morning to fill a vacancy created after a recent resignation. She will serve out the remainder of former Director Jim Fitzpatrick's term, which runs until December 2014. Current board members voted unanimously to select Schafer, citing her experience serving on the board previously and her likely ability to quickly move back into the role. Schafer said she was "relieved" upon being chosen.

When it comes to addressing Planning Commission vacancies, the third time was the charm for the Costa Mesa City Council. After committing a procedural error in January, a majority of the council earlier this month approved a complete do-over of the appointment process for vacant Planning Commission seats of two four-year terms and one two-year term. As a result of that decision, Colin McCarthy, who has been serving as the commission's chairman, was unanimously reappointed to the five-member board for another four years on Tuesday night.

The Costa Mesa Sanitary District is seeking applications to fill a vacancy on its board of directors. The seat vacated by former Director Jim Fitzpatrick lasts until December 2014. Fitzpatrick resigned the seat in January, saying at the time that he no longer wanted to defend himself from the Sanitary District's lawsuit that alleged his prior concurrent service on the district and the Costa Mesa Planning Commission were incompatible. Fitzpatrick has since been appointed to the Planning Commission.

The Costa Mesa City Council on Tuesday will consider reappointing a vacancy on the Planning Commission in order to correct an error it made last month. During the Jan. 15 meeting, the council should not have appointed a third commissioner without sufficient prior notice, according to a directive from the city clerk's office made days after the meeting. To fill Commissioner Edward Salcedo's seat that expires in February 2015 - which he suddenly resigned from on Jan. 14, citing unspecific personal and business reasons - would have required more than a day's notice, city officials have said.

The Costa Mesa Planning Commission will have to wait until next month to find out who will replace a commissioner who suddenly resigned earlier this week. Filling former Commissioner Edward Salcedo's seat, which he resigned Monday, should have required a 10-day notice before the City Council could appoint another person, city officials said Friday afternoon. The directive came from the city clerk's office after Tuesday's council meeting, during which Commissioner Colin McCarthy was unanimously reappointed to the position to serve the remainder of Salcedo's term.

A divided Costa Mesa City Council on Tuesday made three appointments to the Planning Commission during a meeting that echoed the sharp political differences seen in the November election. The council voted 5 to 0 to reappoint Planning Commissioner Colin McCarthy, but split 3-2 on returning former Planning Commissioner Jim Fitzpatrick and appointing newcomer Timothy Sesler. Mayor Jim Righeimer, Mayor Pro Tem Steve Mensinger and Councilman Gary Monahan voted in favor of the appointments; Councilwomen Wendy Leece and Sandra Genis dissented.

Jim Fitzpatrick resigned from the Costa Mesa Sanitary District on Monday, saying he no longer wanted to defend himself in a lawsuit over a perceived conflict of interest. His colleagues had contended that his prior concurrent service on the Sanitary District's board and the Costa Mesa Planning Commission from December 2010 to May 2012 was incompatible. They accepted Fitzpatrick's resignation letter during a special meeting at the district's West 19th Street headquarters, where they also announced that they would be dropping their conflict-of-interest lawsuit as a result.